Department for Communities and Local Government

Communities and Local Government: Staff

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the total (a) budget and (b) full-time equivalent workforce was of his Department's Resilience and Emergencies Division in each of the last six years.

Andrew Percy: Government has paid out almost £300 million to help householders, communities and businesses to get back on their feet, following the winter flooding of 2015/16.In the previous five years, the Departmental pay budgets were not broken down to this level of detail so there are not comparable figures available. The staffing levels in this division fluctuate, using extra capacity to manage the coordination of the Government’s recovery programmes such as the public disorder of 2011, major floods of 2013/14 and major winter floods of 2015/16.In 2016/17, the total pay budget for the Department’s Resilience and Emergencies Division for 2016/17 is £3.01 million. Levels of staff have risen and fallen as the Government response has increased and been stood down.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Manufacturing Industries: Trade Competitiveness

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what additional options he has assessed to compensate directly competing energy intensive industries against the costs of the Renewables Obligation and Feed-in Tariffs if state aid approval is not granted.

Jesse Norman: We notified the European Commission of our proposal to compensate direct competitors to eligible energy intensive businesses last year. We are assessing a number of options that may be available to us within the scope of the EU state aid guidelines.

Manufacturing Industries: Trade Competitiveness

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what progress has been  made on the Government's pre-notification of an application for state aid approval to (a) partially exempt energy intensive industries from the costs of the Renewables Obligation and Feed-in Tariffs and (b) compensate direct competitors against the cost of the Renewables Obligation and Feed-in Tariffs; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: We are in discussions with the European Commission about our state aid pre-notification to move from compensation to exemption for the indirect cost of the Renewables Obligation and small-scale Feed-in Tariffs. We notified the European Commission of our proposal to compensate direct competitors to eligible energy intensive businesses last year.

Housing: Carbon Emissions

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect of his Department's policies on energy efficiency and sustainable energy on the domestic retrofit industry.

Jesse Norman: The Government recognises that energy as a sector, including energy efficiency, supports jobs and opportunities right across the country. In 2014 the domestic and non-domestic energy efficiency and low carbon sectors employed 157,500 people, with turnover of £22.1 billion and exports of £624 million. There is considerable potential for energy efficiency to bring benefits to the UK economy as part of our Industrial Strategy, especially in the building and manufacturing supply chains. A long-term framework requires a policy mix that supports stability and confidence in the market, and we are working with industry to consider future policy options.We also commissioned an independent review chaired by Peter Bonfield into consumer advice, protection, standards and enforcement for home energy efficiency and renewable energy measures. This was published on 16th December.

Energy: Conservation

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans he has to develop an integrated national energy efficiency strategy between central and local government, industry, the third sector and local communities.

Jesse Norman: The Government is committed to tackling climate change and to the UK’s Climate Change Act. Improving our energy efficiency and decarbonising buildings will be key to meeting our domestic commitments, as we look towards 2050. Having set the fifth carbon budget (2028-2032), we are now looking ahead to our emissions reduction plan, which will be published in 2017. This will set out how we will reduce emissions through the 2020s, and will include important roles for central and local government, industry, the third sector, and local communities in delivering energy efficiency.

Housing: Carbon Emissions

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the use of Green Open Homes as part of a national energy efficiency strategy.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the effect that a decrease in the activity of Green Open Homes will have on the domestic retrofit market.

Jesse Norman: The Government provided funding for Green Open Homes to kick start the initiative. The intention was that the scheme would reach a position where it could be sustained by industry support as it provides an opportunity for companies to showcase energy efficiency improvements. The original period of Government support was extended and the value of the scheme will now be demonstrated by whether industry support is forthcoming. Government continues to ensure there is significant support for domestic energy efficiency through the Energy Company Obligation.

Small Businesses: Infrastructure

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to improve local infrastructure for small businesses.

Margot James: This Government is committed to helping small businesses to reach their potential by creating a business environment that supports growth and encourages long-term investment. We have committed £12 billion funding for local areas from 2015-16 to 2020-21 through the Local Growth Fund. This investment has, to date, resulted in over 860 projects to improve local infrastructure, unlock housing, and boost educational attainment. We are also backing business, by reducing corporation tax to 17% by 2020, cutting red tape by a further £10 billion and encouraging major investments in the UK’s research infrastructure.

Natural Gas: Republic of Ireland

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the UK leaving the EU on the level of imports of natural gas from the UK by the Republic of Ireland.

Jesse Norman: The Republic of Ireland imports a significant proportion of its gas supplies from GB, so it is important to ensure continued security of supply after the UK has left the EU.

Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to continue the Renewable Heat Incentive.

Jesse Norman: In the 2015 Autumn Statement the government announced continued funding for the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) schemes, with the budget rising to £1.15bn by 2020/21. Reforms to the RHI were announced on Wednesday 14th December 2016, which are designed to ensure that the RHI focuses on long-term decarbonisation, offers better value for money and protects consumers, supports supply chain growth.

Department for Education

Overseas Students

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect of the UK's decision to leave the EU on the number of international students studying at UK higher education institutions.

Joseph Johnson: Any effects on the number of potential Home, EU and non-EU students following the UK’s exit from the EU will be considered as part of wider discussions about the UK’s relationship with the EU.

Department for Education: Horizon 2020

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the oral contribution by the Chancellor of the Exchequer to the Treasury Committee on 12 December 2016, in response to Q311, who in her Department is responsible for assessing whether grant applications for Horizon 2020 funding are (a) value for money and (b) in line with Government objectives.

Joseph Johnson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to her by my rt. hon. Friend the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to Question UIN 57694:http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2016-12-14/57694/.

School Standards and Framework Act 1998

Mr Graham Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 14 December 2016 to Question 56128, whether she plans to repeal paragraph 4 of Schedule 22 of the Equality Act 2010 which exempts provisions of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 that relate to religious aspects of the appointment and dismissal of teachers.

Nick Gibb: There are no plans to repeal paragraph 4 of Schedule 22 of the Equality Act.As set out in my response to question 56128, we consider that the provisions in sections 60(4) and 60(5) of the School Standards and Framework Act comply with the EU Employment Equality Directive Article 4(2) and as such see no requirement to make any changes to the Equality Act in this respect.

Schools: Food

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans to incorporate new guidance on sugar and nutrition into school food standards.

Edward Timpson: We agreed to update the School Food Standards in light of refreshed government dietary recommendations as part of the 'Childhood Obesity: a plan for action' published in August 2016. Departmental officials have begun talks with Public Health England colleagues about how best to do this.

Obesity: Children

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she expects the outcome of Ofsted's thematic review of obesity, healthy eating and physical activity in schools to be published.

Edward Timpson: The childhood obesity plan, published in August 2016, included a commitment to undertake a thematic review of obesity, healthy eating and physical activity in 2017. We are working with Ofsted and the Department of Health to ensure we meet this commitment.

Ministry of Justice

Prisons

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many safer cells there are; and what proportion of prison cells are safer cells in each prison in England.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Safer cells are designed to make an act of suicide or self-harm as difficult as possible. However, no cell is totally safe, and where a prisoner is accommodated in a safer cell this forms only a part of the package of support measures that are put in place to manage the risk of self-harm or suicide.It is not possible to express the number of safer cells as a proportion of the total number of cells. This is because only those safer cells being used to accommodate prisoners who are being supported using the Assessment, Care in Custody and Teamwork (ACCT) case management process for prisoners at risk are operating as safer cells. The number of safer cells therefore varies over time.

Homosexuality

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of exonerating rather than pardoning gay and bisexual men convicted of now-abolished sexual offences; and if she will bring forward legislative proposals to exonerate gay and bisexual men of such offences.

Mr Sam Gyimah: It is hugely important that we pardon people convicted of historical sexual offences who would be innocent of any crime today. Through pardons and the existing disregard process we will meet our manifesto commitment and put right these wrongs. Everyone living who obtains a pardon through the new process will also have obtained a disregard, meaning that they will be treated as if they had never committed the offence.

Immigration: Appeals

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many First-tier immigration tribunals were lodged in each month since October 2015; and for each such month how many are outstanding.

Dr Phillip Lee: We do everything we can to avoid unnecessary delay in the Immigration and Asylum Tribunal, and have provided an additional 4,950 tribunal sitting days for this financial year to ensure current case loads do not increase. We are keeping performance under close review and are confident there is sufficient capacity to deal with the number of appeals we expect to receive.The number of appeals since October 2015, both lodged and outstanding, in First-tier immigration appeals are in the table below: Appeals LodgedOutstandingOct 156,23154,446Nov 156,06355,907Dec 156,07957,951Jan 164,82259,533Feb 166,45760,488Mar 166,10361,901Apr 165,37062,668May 165,37463,598Jun 165,25464,821Jul 164,77064,108Aug 165,17763,604Sep 164,52462,903

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Museums and Galleries: Closures

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many regional museums have closed in each of the last six years.

Matt Hancock: The Department does not hold data on museums closures in the last six years. However, DCMS is currently in the process of conducting a review of the museums sector, which includes consideration of the resilience of the sector. A link to the Museums Review consultation may be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/review-of-museums-in-england. I also refer the hon Gentleman to the answer provided to PQ 49502.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Income

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the level of income that a couple with two children where the main earner is working full-time on the national living wage will receive relative to what they would have received in tax credits.

Damian Hinds: There is no meaningful way of comparing an unreformed Tax Credit system with Universal Credit. Universal Credit is a fundamentally different benefit to the legacy benefit system and provides people with support into, and to progress in work. If a family were moved from tax credits onto Universal Credit by the Department for Work and Pensions with unchanged circumstances they would not see their benefit income reduce, due to Transitional Protection. The exact level of entitlement will depend on the circumstances of both people in the couple. One element of reform cannot be viewed in isolation from all others, including the introduction of the National Living Wage and rises in the Personal Tax Allowance. Universal Credit now provides for up to 85% of childcare costs, giving parents the opportunity to work and earn more so they can support their families and improve the life chances of their children. Eligible parents can now access up to 30 hours free childcare per week for 3 and 4 year olds. Universal Credit is designed to strengthen incentives for parents to move into and progress in work and evidence shows that under Universal Credit claimants move into work significantly faster and stay in work longer than under the old system.

Jobcentres: Glasgow

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the savings to the public purse which will accrue from the proposed closure of the jobcentre in (a) Castlemilk and (b) Langside.

Damian Hinds: The closure of (a) Castlemilk and (b) Langside are currently only proposals and due to commercial negotiations still on-going we are unable to provide information on estimated savings until the negotiations have concluded.

Jobcentres: Glasgow

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with the Public and Commercial Services Union on the proposed closure of jobcentres in Glasgow.

Damian Hinds: As is usual, we informed the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) Union of our specific proposals for Glasgow five days before we informed staff. A consultation which the PCS can contribute to is now underway and will feed into the final decision making process.

Jobcentres: Glasgow

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on improving public transport connections after the proposed closure of jobcentres in Glasgow.

Damian Hinds: DWP has held a number of discussions with Scottish Government on a wide range of issues in relation to support for claimants and our strategic estate plans. We will continue to engage with both Scottish Government and the local authority to ensure alignment of strategic plans, including tackling barriers to employment such as transport. In this case, the majority of Jobcentres are between approximately one and four miles away from their new locations and the journey using public transport takes from 10 to 40 minutes. We are carrying out a public consultation in areas where customers have to travel more than three miles or more than 20 minutes to help inform the final decision and planning.

Jobcentres: Glasgow

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with the owners of the Castlemilk and Langside jobcentres on the proposed closure of jobcentres in Glasgow before the announcement of those closures on 7 December 2016.

Damian Hinds: The current leases on Castlemilk and Langside jobcentres are held as part of the private finance initiative with Telereal Trillium.

Social Security Benefits: Scotland

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of claim decisions for Scottish claimants of (a) employment and support allowance and (b) personal independence payments were upheld at appeal in each of the last four quarters for which information is available.

Penny Mordaunt: The table below shows the number of appeals registered in Scotland against Personal Independence Payment (PIP) decisions (new claims and reassessments for Disability Living Allowance (DLA)) and how many and what proportion of them, expressed as a percentage of appeals registered (whether heard or not), resulted in no change of award amount for the claimant. QuarterAppeals registeredAward amount changedAward amount did not changeProportion of appeals that had no change to award amountApr 15 - Jun 151,9509301,02052%Jul 15 - Sep-151,67084083050%Oct 15 - Dec-151,71079092054%Jan 16 - Mar-161,9609401,03052% Notes to figures:The quarter refers to the date when the initial PIP decision was made.PIP data includes both normal rules cases and special rules cases for the terminally ill claimants, and is for both new claims and DLA reassessment claims.Data has been rounded to the nearest 10. Figures may not sum due to rounding.Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole percentage.This is unpublished data and, as such, it does not meet the quality standard required for official statistics publication. It should be used with caution and it may be subject to future revision.Data taken from the PIP computer system’s management information. Information for Employment Support Allowance Fit for Work decisions only, is as follows Period 1.10.2008 to 30.9.2015 (for claims started within that period) Appealed decisions upheld: 45,400Appealed decisions overturned: 36,700

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Flood Control

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of the £12.5 million allocated to the Environment Agency for temporary flood defences, as set out in the National Flood Resilience Review, has been spent by the Environment Agency since the publication of that review in September 2016.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Environment Agency has spent all of the £7.65 million allocated for use in 2016/17. The majority of this funding has been used to purchase around 20 miles of temporary flood barrier, which increases the Environment Agency’s overall holding to around 25 miles. The Environment Agency has also doubled their stock of sandbags from 250,000 to 500,000 and purchased two additional Incident Command Vehicles.  The Environment Agency will use the remainder of the funding in 2017/18 to purchase an additional 70 pumps and ancillary equipment, three further Incident Command Vehicles and storage and logistics capabilities.

Home Office

Counter-terrorism

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many intervention providers for the Channel Programme are pending approval.

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of her Department's approved intervention providers for the Channel Programme are based in (a) the North East, (b) the North West, (c) Yorkshire and the Humber, (d) the East Midlands, (e) the West Midlands, (f) the east of England, (g) London, (h) the South East and (i) the South West.

Mr Ben Wallace: There are currently 16 intervention providers (IPs) undergoing assessment for approval to provide ideological mentoring within the Channel programme. The table below provides a breakdown of the regional location of where current IPs reside and are based. The majority of IPs work nationally and are frequently commissioned to work outside of their geographical location to undertake interventions. The number of IPs regionally can fluctuate over time, this is due in part to IPs relocating to other areas; new IPs being added to the register; and a change in personal circumstances that limits capacity to undertake interventions. We keep the list of IPs under review to ensure that regional distribution is appropriate to the number of Channel cases.RegionNumber of providers North East1North West10Yorkshire and the Humber0East Midlands7West Midlands9East of England5London15South East1South West2Wales1

Immigration Controls

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of (a) flights, (b) sea transportation and (c) rail transportation has been risk-assessed when notified to the Border Force in each year since 2010.

Mr David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of Advanced Passenger Information checks has been completed by Border Force at primary check points on (a) scheduled flights, (b) unscheduled flights, (c) sea transportation and (d) rail transportation in each year since 2010.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Every route to the United Kingdom whether by air, sea or rail carries an element of risk, and assessment of risk is undertaken across all routes and all modes. Analysis of passenger, crew and service information in advance of travel or upon departure to the UK forms part of the risk assessment process – which is complemented by full checks of all passengers arriving at primary control point on all modes.

Visas: Iran

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many visas have been approved in Iran in each month since 1 May 2014.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, July - September 2016’, available from the following website: https://www.gov.uk

Vetting

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for criminal records checks have been received by the Disclosure and Barring Service from the Football Association in each year since 2009-10; and what proportion of those applications (a) passed and (b) failed.

Sarah Newton: The DBS does not receive information from applicants that enables it to report statistics accurately on the total number of applications relating to specific employers, including the Football Association, unless they are a Registered Body.

Corruption: Arrests

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many arrests the International Corruption Unit of the National Crime Agency has made since its creation.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many staff there are in the International Corruption Unit of the National Crime Agency.

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many staff at the International Corruption Unit of the National Crime Agency are on secondment from other police forces.

Mr Ben Wallace: As serious and organised crime threats change, the National Crime Agency retains the ability to flex its resources to react. There are a number of agency wide capabilities and functions that all commands have access to and use in the fight against serious and organised crime.The number of staff working in a particular unit is not a reliable indicator of the overall National Crime Agency resource linked to a particular type of crime. The majority of the National Crime Agency’s staff work as a flexible investigative resource, not in a particular unit, but assigned to particular operations across all areas of the NCA as needed.The National Crime Agency does not break down the number of arrests by department (or National Crime Agency predecessors). Activity that leads to arrest and successful prosecution, is often the result of work undertaken by multiple units across the agency.

Refugees: Children

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding has been allocated to local authorities to support the unaccompanied child refugees in the UK.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Government significantly increased the funding provided to local authorities looking after Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC) in July. These rates are based on a detailed analysis of financial information sent to the Home Office by local authorities about their actual cost of caring for Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children. The analysis showed that the average cost across all local authorities of looking after an Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Child aged under 16 was approximately £41,610 per annum and the average cost of supporting those aged 16 and 17 was approximately £33,215 per annum. The Government has made additional funding available for local authorities through the Controlling Migration Fund.The UK Government takes it’s responsibility in all cases involving children seriously has committed to regularly review funding to support and care for unaccompanied asylum-seeking and refugee children, working closely with the Local Government Association and local authorities.

Offences against Children: Aston Hall Hospital

Holly Lynch: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is expected that the inclusion in Operation Hydrant of cases relating to historical abuse in youth football will have an effect on the date on which the inquiry  plans to report on abuse at Aston Hall.

Sarah Newton: The Home Office provided £1.8m in 2016/17 to fund Operation Hydrant, which was established to coordinate the national police response to allegations of non-recent child sexual abuse involving persons of prominence or within institutions. Operation Hydrant is providing the same coordinating function for the allegations relating to football that have recently come to light. Resources are being prioritised appropriately to meet this emerging demand while continuing to deliver the national coordination function.As the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Community Health and Care advised in response to PQ 55902 on 6 December 2016, timescales for any system-wide Serious Case Review or Learning Review about abuse in Aston Hall will depend on the outcome of the police investigation which is the responsibility of Derbyshire Police.

Internet: Bullying

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been charged with offences relating to online internet abuse in each of the last five years.

Sarah Newton: The information requested is not held by the Home Office. The Home Office receives data from police forces in England and Wales on crimes and outcomes of all offences in the notifiable offence list. Online internet abuse is not a specific crime category and such abuse is likely to fall into one of the specific offences such as ‘harassment’ or ‘stalking’. Furthermore, police outcomes measure the number of offences that result in a charge, rather than the number of people charged for each offence.The Ministry of Justice Court Proceedings Database holds information on defendants proceeded against, found guilty and sentenced for criminal offences in England and Wales.

Torture

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of Proving Torture: Demanding the impossible, Home Office mistreatment of expert medical evidence, published by Freedom from Torture in November 2016; and what steps her Department is taking to improve asylum decision-making for torture survivors.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I refer the hon. Member to the response to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Hall Green, UIN 54220, on 30 November 2016.

Members: Correspondence

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish a response to the briefing note by the trade union, Community, which was sent to her by the hon. Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun with the letter of 1 November 2016 on Dungavel Immigration Return Centre; and if she will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We do not intend to publish a response to the briefing note by the trade union, Community. A response to the hon. Member's letter, which contained the briefing note, was sent on 20 December 2016.

Burglary

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the implication for burglary prevention of the selling by Amazon of lock picking kits.

Brandon Lewis: The Home Office has not undertaken such an assessment. We are aware that equipment which may have a number of legitimate uses can be bought online which can potentially be misused by criminals to commit crimes such as burglary. We are clear that, where such crimes take place and are reported to the police, they should be taken seriously, investigated and, where appropriate, the perpetrators taken through the courts and met with tough sentences.

Immigration Controls: EU Nationals

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with which (a) EU heads of government, (b) heads of state, (c) members of the EU Commission and (d) leaders of the parliamentary groupings in the European Parliament she has (i) met and (ii) discussed the Government's plans to reduce net migration from the EU after the UK leaves the EU.

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what representations she has received from and what discussions she has had with (a) Ian Wright, director-general of the Food and Drink Federation, (b) Helen Dickinson, chief executive at the British Retail Consortium and (c) others on potential changes to immigration systems or new work visa systems after the UK has left the EU.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations and individuals are passed to the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis and are subsequently published on the Cabinet Office website which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/cabinet-office

Sexual Offences

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of proposed changes in the status and treatment of sexual abuse victims on the way in which police forces deal with such cases.

Sarah Newton: The Home Office has no plans to change the status and treatment of victims of sexual abuse. It is essential that those reporting serious crimes to the police are treated as victims. The police should focus on the credibility of the allegation rather than the credibility of the witness or victim. Accepting that a person has been a victim of crime does not automatically mean accepting that a specific allegation is credible.

Overseas Students

Ms Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the net financial contribution per annum to the economy from international students; and how that contribution is expected to change in the next three years.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Government recognises that international students make an important contribution during their time here, and they help make our education system one of the best in the world. The UK remains the second most popular destination in the world for international higher education students.We continue to be committed to ensuring our top universities can attract the best students from around the world. The latest figures show that visa applications from university students are now 17 per cent higher than they were in 2010 and visa applications to Russell Group universities are 47 per cent higher than in 2010.

Department of Health

Obesity: Children

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects Public Health England to host a conference on digital technology that can help reduce childhood obesity.

Nicola Blackwood: The childhood obesity plan states that Public Health England will hold an annual digital technology “hackathon” bringing together leading developers and programmers to produce innovative solutions to address childhood obesity. A date for this event has yet to be set.

Nutrition

Mrs Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects his Department's review of the nutrient profile model to be completed.

Nicola Blackwood: The review of the nutrient profiling model is due to be completed by autumn 2017. The proposed timescale is currently under review.

Hyperactivity

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the average waiting time for child and adolescent mental health services attention deficit hyperactivity disorder assessment in (a) York Central constituency, (b) City of York Council area and (c) England in each year since 2010.

Nicola Blackwood: This information is not collected centrally.

Surgery

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance NICE has issued on whether it is clinically appropriate to delay surgery for (a) obese patients for 12 months and (b) smokers for 6 months.

Nicola Blackwood: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has advised that it has not made any specific recommendations on delaying surgery for obese patients or patients who smoke, and that its guidelines tend to focus on the diagnosis, care and management of health conditions, rather than protocols for the delivery of services.